hallucinatory sleep disorder

sleep disorders

Evidence from a recently conducted National Sleep Foundation polls reveals that:

• 3 out of 4 of people questioned said that they frequently experience difficulty in sleeping.



• As little as half of people questioned said that they slept without a problem on the majority of nights.



• A quarter of people questioned said that difficulty in sleeping impacted upon their daily lives.

The poll also revealed that:

• Just under two thirds of adult motorists reported having driven whilst drowsy in the past year. (4 % reported that they had had an accident or near-accident because of tiredness or actually falling asleep while driving.)



• People questioned referenced sleep-related issues as the most usual reason for being late for work. Almost two thirds of working adults reported missing work, events/activities or making errors at work through sleep-related problems in the previous 3 months.



• 75% of adults polled reported a sleep problem with their partner - with snoring being the commonest. Partnered adults, suffer doubly disruptive sleep difficulties, as one partner's sleep problem could cause the other to lose, on average, almost an hour of sleep nightly.



• A quarter of adults polled with partners report difficulties in their sexual relationship because of tiredness. They enjoy sex less often or lose interest in sex as a result of tiredness. Numerous couples sleep separately because of a sleep problem.

A large number of us suffer from the odd sleepless night without any consequences. When, however, the occasional night here and there turns into a pattern of several nights in a row, you are looking at a sleeping problem.

Restless leg syndrome (RLS), a familial disorder stimulating unpleasant tingling, crawling, or prickling sensations in the legs and feet and an urge to move them if you want relief, is emerging as one of the more common sleep disorders, especially in the elderly.

Affecting as many as 12 million Americans, restless leg syndrome leads to unremitting leg movement during the day and to sleeplessness at night.

Severe RLS is most common in elderly people, although symptoms might start at any age. In some cases, it may be linked to other conditions such as anemia, pregancy, or diabetes.

Sleep apnea is among the most common and most dangerous types of sleep disorder. Approximately 18 million individuals in the US suffer from sleep apnea, that is characterised by recurring episodes of cessation of breathing during sleep. In time this can lead to cardiac disease, disordered thinking, and high blood pressure.

Commonly connected with increasing age, sleep apnea can occur in association with loss of muscle tone or a buildup of fat. These changes cause a collapse in the windpipe while breathing When muscles relax in the course of sleep.

This form of the condition, named obstructive sleep apnea, is usually connected to loud snoring (though not everyone who snores has this condition). Sleep apnea may also occur if the neurons responsible for controlling breathing do not function correctly during sleep.

During an episode of obstructive sleep apnea, attempts to inhale air will create suction that collapses the windpipe. This, in turn, obstructs the air flow for between ten seconds and one minute while you struggle to breathe. When your blood oxygen level falls, the brain responds by awakening you enough to tighten the muscles of the upper airway and open the windpipe. You may snort or gasp, then resume breathing. This cycle may be repeated hundreds of times a night.

The continual awakenings that you experience as a sleep apnea sufferer leave you feeling permanently sleepy and may produce personality changes like irritability or depression. Sleep apnea also deprives you of oxygen, which can lead to a decline in mental functioning, morning headaches, or a loss of interest in sex. High blood pressure, an irregular heartbeat, and a raised risk of stroke and heart attack also Often arise in cases of sleep apnea.

If you are suffering from from severe, untreated sleep apnea you appear 2 to 3 times more likely to have an automobile accident than the general population.

Mild sleep apnea can frequently be overcome by loosing weight or by preventing yourself from sleeping on your back. You may also require a special device or surgery to rectify the obstruction.

Narcolepsy affects in the region of 250,000 individuals in the USA. Individuals with narcolepsy have frequent "sleep attacks" during the day, even when they enjoy a normal amount of night-time sleep. Attacks can last anything from several seconds to over half an hour.

People with narcolepsy may also experience cataplexy (a loss of muscle control during emotional situations), hallucinations, temporary paralysis when they awaken, and disrupted night-time sleep. These symptoms seem to be features of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep that appear during waking, suggesting that narcolepsy is a disorder of sleep regulation.

The symptoms of narcolepsy typically appear in adolescence, although it typically takes years to obtain a correct diagnosis.

The disorder (or at least a predisposition for it) is usually hereditary, but it is from time to time linked to brain damage from a head injury or to neurological disease.

Having been diagnosed, stimulants, antidepressants, or other drugs can be used to control the symptoms and prevent the dangerous and embarrassing effects of falling asleep at inappropriate times. Naps at certain times of the day may also reduce the excessive sleepiness during the day.

In addition to your wrist watch, the alarm clock beside your bed or the clock on your mantelpiece, all of which, if you're like me, govern your life to a large extent, you also possess an internal clock which dictates your body's rhythm.

Your internal clock governs many of your body's functions, regulating such things as temperature and the release of hormones and, most especially, telling you when it's time to get up and go to sleep.

Following the pattern of day and night (light and darkness) this internal clock tracks a pattern of close to 24 hours thereby giving your body a 24 hour rhythm or, to give it its proper title, a circadian rhythm - from the Latin circa (about) dies (a day).

Whenever disruption to your circadian rhythm takes place as a result of shift work, you may suffer from temporary sleep disorders such as excessive daytime sleepiness or transient insomnia. Without treatment, transient sleep problems associated with a change in your work schedule may become chronic and in serious cases may even require medical intervention.

Shift work also places you at increased risk of chronic cardiovascular and gastrointestinal problems. Heartburn, menstrual irregularities, indigestion, high blood pressure, flu, colds and weight gain are all encountered more amongst shift workers.

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